‘About Time’ is a British romantic movie written and directed by one of biggest names in British TV and movie industry, Richard Curtis. Curtis is the founder of Britain’s ‘Comic Relief’ and hugely responsible in making career of legendary comedian Rowan Atkinson. This is Curtis’ third directional venture after ‘Love Actually’ and ‘The Boat That Rocked’.
Story is about a guy Tim Lake (Domhnall Gleeson). He has crossed a rough teeny era and now at 21, he is cranky. A nature boy who lacks self-esteem is told by his father James Lake (Bill Nighy) about a special ancestral quality which is only common in their men – travel in time. That means, just close your eyes and press your hands while hiding his identity from the others which will rewind him to a past to correct the things to have a better future. Strange init??
Enters gorgeous Charlotte (Margot Robbie) who is friend of Tim’s sister KitKat (Lydia Wilson). Charlotte has joined his family to stay for a short period and Tim starts taking interest in her. Watching this movie, we all will surely fall in haste to wish for once we could ever have that special ability to travel with time and solve our matters. Obviously the ability is unrealistic, but Richard Curtis makes this unrealistic thing look realistic that not every power has its every say. If you have power that doesn’t mean that you can control everything… Tim loses Charlotte despite using his ability.
The quality of this movie is that there is a huge chance that you will take the role of Tim by heart. Following his each and every move, you do are travelling with time, falling in love and waiting for the next moment. Now you (I mean Tim) moves to London to pursue his career to London. Faces the reality! Tim now lives with his father’s old friend Harry (Tom Hollander) who is pretty goofy and spooky. A struggler who write plays.
Six boring months passes and then Tim fells in love with a girl Mary (Rachel McAdams) in a restaurant. Many viewers will get confuse of the bizarreness of picturising the dinner scene of first Tim/Mary encounter in restaurant in total darkness. Why a blackout in restaurant?
Actually this restaurant is Dans le Noir, a French chain restaurant and spa. This was launched back in 2004 in Paris. This chain was founded with a concept of serving the guests in total darkness which is also named ‘Dark Dining’ or ‘Blind Dining’. Experienced BLIND waiters serve the visitors in this chain. Visitors are asked to place all their possessions (i.e., watches, mobile phones, bags or any object that projects light) into a locker. Dark Dining traces back its history in the 19th century.
Anyhow due to a rare site chosen by director, the first visible on-screen pairing of Tim/Mary is also electrifying. You will never feel unromantic the way they begin conversing and growing their relationship with time. But hello!!! hello!!!! what a supernatural twist!! Tim attends Harry’s play where the actor forgets his line and to make the play successful, Tim travels with time due to the fact, the memoir of his meeting with Mary erases by settling his participation in Harry’s play. Oh what have you done you nincompoop!!!
Life is full of chances. Magic happens and love is magic. Next morning, he meets Mary in a Kate Moses art exhibition but Mary obviously won’t recognize him because he erased the past with Harry’s play. And to more a tragedy, Mary now has a boyfriend.
Unacceptable!!!!! Tim has to pretend to be sanctimonious by using his supernatural power. Scene changes again, story rewinds back now to a lavishing party where Mary is now single. Tim now is convinced with the situation and furthermore has the advantage of knowing that she is huge fan of Kate Moses.
Things work and both are simultaneously in love. They begin dating. One day, Tim meets Charlotte and go for a dinner. There she confesses that she perhaps would have accepted his love if traveled back to time. Oops!!! will he enjoy this wild fantasy? Tim is in brink of confusion between the two. Charlotte even signals him to have ding-dong in the hotel where she is staying. At the eleventh hour, Tim decides to run away to Mary and proposes her. A power of commitment in love!!!
No clutching but cramping. Mary is pregnant and Tim introduces her to his family. She is warm welcomed. Tim announces their wedding and her pregnancy altogether. Everything goes well, everything moves well…. They marries and rains heavily. The joy of Tim’s family knows no bound, as baby girl arrives. Tim/Mary and baby settles in new home with no need of using his time-traveling ability.
Once the baby is born, Tim’s ability make a turn around. His father tells him that once his child will born, travelling back to a time before the child’s birth will in fact stop that child from ever being born, as time will happen differently in every aspect of his life.
Tim lives his life happily and another baby is born. He also enjoys a successful career as lawyer winning many cases with his team. One day a news breaks that Tim’s father suffers from cancer. Tim cannot change this tragic news. I will leave you here to watch yourself what happens in last half an hour. I assure you it is dramatic and heart touching.
‘About Time’ is the movie about life and turnarounds. It speaks a volume of notion and emotions you are surrendered and surrounded with. The movie is produced for an ordinary human like you to think if God had granted you a lifeline or a special ability or an extraordinary talent or a timeless opportunity…. to live your world, to change nature of things, to pick rights or wrongs…. how exactly would you execute.
Precisely it is strange to follow a story-line which is untrue but looks to be true. But apply in real life and talk about it. You will understand and even realize the mistakes you had made or are about to make. Had things gone wrong, how would you ever have corrected? Tim keeps turning the table in his favor but the director actually is successful to present that every power in the world has limitations. When child is born, Tim can never go back.
The movie has all potential to grab your attention and watch it till the end without an element of getting bored. Dialogues are simple, narration is frank. Script has life little humorous little sentimental. Many scenes are glompy. Father-son chemistry is remarkable and will never upset you.
Domhnall Gleeson-Rachel McAdams’ on-screen pairing is fabulous. Supporting cast has a good show specially Bill Nighy as Tim’s father. Background score is equally balanced with the pace of movie specially playing of piano at many critical scenes. Selection of soundtracks for the movie is excellent and picturised at suitable situations. Even Jimmy Fontana’s Il Mondo played at the bride’s arrival in church fitted very well.
No doubt, ‘About Time’ is one of best English movies of 2013 and very worth-watching.
Ratings: 7/10
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Sami Naik | Film Critic 